Margherita, HL Exhibition

It gives me particular pleasure to showcase Margherita's work here. She was a student of my dear friend and estimed colleague Nicola Shears, and she came to my summer IB art course at la Vigna Art Studios 2 summers in a row. It was during the first summer there that she began an investigation into plant roots that developed into her focus for the entire course.

Exploring her roots

It all started with a humble pencil drawing of roots dug up from the studio garden, which Maggie further elaborated into lino prints and embossings. Back at school, with thoughtful guidance from her teacher, she went on to explore Roots in a wider more conceptual sense, looking at family trees, and more specifically, her own ancestry and roots as set forth in the first two paragraphs of her CR:

The overarching theme of my work is roots. I am intrigued by the natural world and the complexity, intricacy of its forms. However, it was not until I started creating my own artwork that I also explored the dual significance of the word “root”, as it also branches into the concept of one’s ancestry and relatives. This has led me into a deeper journey of discovering my family.

My work aims to capture the uniqueness of natural forms, inviting the viewer to consider even arguably less aesthetically beautiful elements of nature such as roots, under a different light. Meanwhile, the work I have exhibited also unfolds into an almost obsessive research into my ancestry and family.

she goes on to discuss the various media and techniques she used and their particular relevance to her theme

In order to lay the foundations of my work, I produced observational studies in graphite of roots, exploring their literal significance. Patrick van Caeckenbergh’s series “Drawings of trees” was influential for his careful studies of organic forms. I experimented with a range of medium and techniques, including paint made with soil and glue, to further highlight the texture of my subject matter. Drawing and printing have been vital, including drypoint, transfer and embossing while photography, video, and installation have proven to be essential processes throughout. I have made my own paper, stitched and built with wood, collected items and employed text, such as my family’s poetry.

Informed by artists and by her research in the Comparative Study

The artists that Margherita looked at in her Comparative Study (see Margherita CS HL ): Patrick van Caeckenbergh, Ricardo Brey and Marc Dion are all deeply connected to her own investigations and helped her to develop the characteristics of order evident in her semi-scientific presentation.

Herman de Vries was deeply inspirational in my journey, especially for his use of actual organic material such as soil, flowers and moss. By bluntly displaying natural findings as they are, I aim to ‘peel’ off any exteriority, and this is symbolically my way of making sense of nature. Similarly, it is my systematic way of understanding my roots. I ascribe further significance to the raw materials that I have used because they have been collected from the glasshouse of my country house in Tuscany, where my family has lived for generations. In particular, the greenhouse, which can be seen in my video, is a place where new roots are formed and simultaneously, where old plants are kept alive.

This introduces another crucial theme of my work: order. Dion and Hirst’s work contributed to the formation of this characteristic. This is of great importance because it shapes the way I exhibit all of my work, how I conceive space and composition – or even mediums. For instance, I have used test tubes, labelling and glass cases to explore an idea of clinical order, taken further with my representation of DNA and fingerprinting and by symbolically cataloguing my family tree.

This very well conceived and thoughtfully curated exhibition received a 7. Brava Maggie!

Coming soon in the gallery pages: Margherita's other work in the Process Portfolio and Margherita CS HL all of which support and inform each other, this is what we all dream of right?

Enjoy this selection of Margherita's work. There were also three video pieces in her exhibition and a glass display cabinet of objects which I have yet to add. View as a slideshow and then click on each image to see thumbnail with exhibition text.

Margherita, Exhibition HL: Origin 12/2015 Ink, soil paint (glue, soil, ink) on rice paper mounted on canvas, root, string, pins 100x100cm Origin presents the concept of roots, and the title itself indicates their metaphorical meaning. Van Caeckenbergh’s “Drawing of an Old tree” inspired me for the realistic depiction of natural forms, which I have highlighted using soil paint and by suspending the real root from which I painted the panels. This contrasts with the sense of order conveyed by pinning the panels minimally.

Margherita, Exhibition HL: VII Roots 06/2016 Graphite and digital photographs transferred with acetone on paper 77x33 cm This observational drawing allowed me to further and meticulously explore the forms and structure of roots. In fact, I was inspired by scientific and botanical journals for the display, labelling created with image transfer and cataloguing. Examining the intricate forms of “roots” as if they were something of scientific scrutiny symbolises my attempt at analysing my family.

Margherita, Exhibition HL: Uncovering 03/2017 Drypoint etchings, photocopies transferred with acetone, black pencil 78x63cm (triptych) I developed 7 Roots into three prints uncovering a dialogue between roots and poetry. I selected a poem by Neruda mentioning roots, another by my grandma and Ionesco expressing the insubstantiality of our roots nowadays. In each print, I have added my fingerprint, as a mark of one’s identity. Dion’s Herbarium prints inspired me for the orderly composition.

Margherita, Exhibition HL: . Family portrait 07/2016 Wood, screws, acrylic, photocopies, acrylic resin, branch, net, thread 36.5x57x9cm This assemblage expresses the idea of genealogy. The dark wood conveys antiquity, enhanced by chalk and charcoal in the background. The net transmits impenetrability in perceiving one’s roots. Stitching symbolises my attempt at unifying my family and the red thread embodies bloodlines. Cornell and Hiller’s work inspired me for the structural qualities of the box.

Margherita, Exhibition HL: Impressions 07/2016 Embossings and cardboard cutouts 42x64cm The absence of colour in the embossings conveys the idea of memories fading away, as my impressions of my family get fainter with time. Pressing the cardboard cutouts on the paper formed an indent, adding a further dimension to the paper, as if memories formed a deep impression on us. The simplicity of the composition is purposeful: order allows me to understand my roots.

Margherita, Exhibition HL: Connatural 04/2017 Gauze, acrylic, thread, acetate sheet 120x200cm circa The interwoven fabric recalls connections and red conveys a visceral feeling, especially in the string-like continuations, “umbilical cords”, (inspired by Hesse). I stitched torn areas as if sewing distant parts of my family into a unified whole. The flatness of the fingerprints on acetate, contrast with the bold gauze, representing the identity of family members, similar in nature.